MY SO-CALLED SEMBREAK
Posted at 07:01 AM
FIRST SEM THAT WAS
Four months of my first semester in grad school went by in a flash. Despite the challenge of juggling work and school, who would have thought I’d enjoy studying again so much? I took 2 non-major electives, one in HR training and another on the Psychology of Exceptional Children (SPED). One of my most memorable experiences was our SPED field trip last September 25.
First, we went to the
Molave Youth Center in QC Hall compound, a rehabilitation center for 100 juvenile offenders. Almost all of them were teenaged boys, crammed into a tiny concrete building. The youths were excited to see visitors and greeted us as we toured the small facility. They had livelihood workshops and dance classes, and Two of my MA classmates were teaching them basic Reading and English for the PEP test/high school equivalency exam. They were pretty well-behaved as a whole, though some of my female classmates were told by the admin to cover up since they were wearing sleeveless tops. We were not allowed to take pictures, but we ended up buying trinkets made by the kids.
In the afternoon, we went all the way to the
Elsie Gaches Village, an orphanage for 600 persons with disabilities (PWD). Most of them were abandoned when their parents saw that they were different and had mental retardation, cerebral palsy, Down Syndrome, autism, etc. The small one-storey wooden huts I saw 10 years ago were replaced by airy 2-storey concrete cottages scattered on the hilly compound. In contrast, the Molave Youth center looked like a bodega. But, while the youth in Molave were kept busy, the kids in Elsie Gaches were doing nothing. The staff explained that they were shorthanded, and they only had 2 SPED teachers for all their clients. The kids we saw were just lying down, sitting on the floor, staring off into space, wandering around aimlessly, or in one case boldly approaching the visitors and grabbing food. One of my classmates kept on muttering “This is like a zoo,” and I can’t help but agree. For some of my companions, it was their first time to be that close to PWD’s, and it made them rethink why they took up SPED. With heavy hearts, we all agreed that something needed to be done…but what? Our class left biscuits and toiletries, but I’m sure a lot of them would be coming back to Elsie Gaches.
There were only 2 flies in the ointment: a murderous SPED final exam (so that’s why the prof allowed open notes) and the experience of cramming papers again.
SEMBREAK THAT IS
Sembreak. Time to rest and recover from the stress of exercising rarely-used brain cells and mental functions. All I want to do right now is sleep, eat, read, sleep, eat some more. But here I am, still up to my eyebrows in to do (and failed to do) lists:
- Silver wedding anniversary invitations - check
- Various write-ups and articles I owe - ummmm
- Choir rehearsals – Saturdays yes, other no
- Lipa rehearsal - check
- Fix my things and file school stuff – ummm
- Voice lessons – when?
- Regular BS – I always oversleep
- Open bank account – pending
- Visit the dentist and get my chipped tooth fixed – check
- Read fiction – check
- Get thinner – BWAHAHAHA
- Watch Stardust – I want! When?
- Massage/spa – dream on
- Dates with various people – I think this won’t happen soon…sorry Hannah, Pepay, Aton, and Esbi Exec CG.
- SR – I hope
- And…. A surprise!
I really really have to
fix my body clock. The past month, I slept 3-4 hours Monday-Thursday, stayed up 24 hours Friday-Saturday, then hibernated the whole of Sunday. I want to go to church again.
I want to see the sun! I want to talk to my friends again face to face.
SECOND SEM THAT WILL BE
My 2
nd sem life now depends on CRS (online computerized registration system) of UP Diliman. Arrrgh. I dutifully spent 2 mornings in Diliman after shift to get my webmail address and another trip to make sure it worked. Then as instructed, I signed up over the internet for my desired schedule. and voila. After the first batch run, none were approved. A measly 6 units. Is that too much to ask? To think that there were 20 slots still available in all the classes I signed up for. CRS is a (frustrating) lottery indeed.
I’m hoping to get the night classes this time. My boss already approved my 10pm-7am shift change, and I already went through pre-advising at my home department. Since I’m not an Educ major, I have to take an additional 9 units (3 subjects) before I can take any major subjects. Delay, here we go again.
And of course, I’ll still be doing a crazy school-work-ministry-etc balancing act. I am busy, therefore I am.
What do you know… I survived 14 hours without touching my cellphone. I left it at home when I went to work last night.
